


Light

by Kicchin



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Canonical Character Death, F/M, Flower Theft Prompt, Heavy Angst, Im still hurt with Endgame and since the ban for spoilers are lifted, Not A Fix-It, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Spoilers, Tears lots of tears were involved in creating this, Timeskip, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tribute for Tony Stark, please dont hate me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-05-07
Packaged: 2020-02-27 16:09:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18742474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kicchin/pseuds/Kicchin
Summary: “But this girl gotta be something , those flowers are my personal favourite. I want to see this girl for myself, you should bring her over sometime, she must be special to warrant flower theft.”Peter stares dumbfounded, through all the genius that he is, he couldn't find the right words to break it to the man in front of him that he is on his way to a graveyard.





	Light

**Author's Note:**

> "Tony Stark was a hero, long before he was Iron Man."

Robert moved downtown New York a few months back after welcoming his son into the world. The house is a little farther from the bustling noises of the city and the lush green landscape of the property charmed his sweet wife, and it is perfect. She filled them with trees, flowers and plants of all varieties. In the early morning, before she wakes up and their little angel, he would walk around admiring the beauty of handiwork as the morning dew glisten against the greens, the blues and the red of the lush flora.

Mornings has always been relatively quiet for Robert, uneventful at most until his little angels wake up. Today should have been no different, _should_ have, Robert thought as he nurses a mug of hot coffee wearing a bath robe over his gray pyjamas walking around the lush garden. The sun is beginning to peak over the horizon slowly staining the blue of the previous night with its warm glow of yellow. Robert takes a lungful of the air as he allows his feet to take him.

He listens to the sound of stray birds chirping, the leaves rustling against the gentle breeze, the distant sound of the city beginning to wake up and the bushes crunching.

 _Crunching?_ Robert raises an eyebrow at the unfamiliar sound, slowly he turns and follows the sound hoping it is not some wildlife that found its way to their yard. He quietly reaches for the phone inside the pocket of his pants, ready to call a animal control if the needs arise. As soon as he reaches to the said area which is the far off corner of the yard, close to road he spots something moving—but it isn’t wildlife.

“Well good morning to you too.” Robert says swiftly before taking a sip of his coffee. He smirks as he watch the _person_ behind the bushes pokes his head out of the said bush.

A young man, Robert observes, possibly a high school student, wearing a well-worn dark blue sweater over a white collared button up paired with a washed out black pants. His brown hair is unruly sticking in several direction and seemingly defying gravity. His big brown eyes stare dumbfounded at Robert, like a kid caught with his hands inside the cookie jar—and that’s somehow accurate.

The young man blinks almost seemingly lost for words which gives Robert enough time to look at what the kid has in his hands which makes his ease turn to a frown. He finds a handful of flowers in his hand, blue delphiniums and forget-me-nots all bundled in his hand, they aren’t exactly _a lot_ but still they are his wife’s.

“Really, stealing flowers?” Robert tells the boy with a frown. “You know you’re in private property, right?”

The boy stammers, and blushes in embarrassment. Looking at him, Robert couldn’t seem to feel any ounce of malice out of the kid.

“I-I’m sorry I…I didn’t know. T-This used to be uhm…an empty l-lot and I…I just thought the flowers just started blooming here so I…well, that’s not an excuse, I-I should have looked. I-I’m really sorry for ruining your g-garden s-sir. I-I’ll pay for the f-flowers.”

Robert chuckles at the boy’s pace, despite his stammering he is able to spout almost a whole train of his thoughts in one breathing. The child keeps talking holding the flowers against his chest with an apologetic look.

“Okay, okay.” Robert tells his raising his free hand to stop the boy. “Apology accepted. We haven’t put up the fence yet so that’s kinda our fault too. Also my wife would kill me if she found out I made a kid cry.”

“I-I’m actually sixtee—“

“I’m Robert, by the way.”

The boy blinks, his nervous fit seem to mellow a bit. Big brown eyes widening with childlike innocence as he stands up straight.

“I’m…uhm, I’m Peter Parker.”

Robert nods.

“You said this lot _used_ to be empty, so are you from around here?”

Peter shakes his head, he looks down at the bouquet.

“N-Not really, I’m uh…I’m from Queens.” He confesses, “B-But I…I’m supposed to uhm…pay someone a visit.”

Robert takes another sip of his coffee, Queens is a long way from where they are and this is a very early hour to be just walking around. His eyes scans the boy and the flowers, he finds himself chuckling at the idea coming to piece itself in his head. A teen, going out early in the morning and picking flowers on the neighbourhood surely it must be for someone special.

“I-I’m really sorry about your flowers Mr. R-Robert uhm, s-sir.”

Robert waves a hand in front of himself in dismissal.

The sun is beginning to be warm against Robert’s cheeks and he recognizes it as a reminder that his wife and kid will be up _very_ soon. He looks back at the teen, eyes still glued to him with a very concerned and apologetic look. He smiles thinking how lucky would any man be to have a son like Peter.

“Well, I have to go though.” He tells him, “But this girl gotta be _something ,_ those flowers are _my_ personal favourite. I want to see this girl for myself, you should bring her over sometime, she must be special to warrant flower theft.”

Peter’s lips purses, his eyes wide in shock and again lost for words. Robert only laughs and winks at him, before approaching the teen and giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder. He walks back and waves Peter goodbye. The brunet hears the distant call of a woman and Robert answers back to her before disappearing into the massive estate.

Peter looks down on the flowers in his hands

.

.

.

The well-trimmed grass crunch against Peter’s feet, he sets his bag down on his side and he sits crossed legged. The morning sun pours over him while his fingers trace the nimble stems of the flowers in his hand.

“I want you to know first. This got on the mail yesterday afternoon, when I got back from school. I haven’t told Aunt May yet.” Peter begins as he pulls the bagpack to himself, with his free hand he pulls a slightly crumpled letter out of his bag. He smoothen it as much as he can before unfolding it. He takes a deep breath before reading the letter out loud. “Dear Mr. Parker, It is with outmost delight that we congratulate you for passing the admission to Massachusetts Institute of Technology. We look forward in having you this academic year 20XX-20XX.”

Peter grins, he could still remember how many times since yesterday afternoon he tried to reread it thinking someone must have pranked him. He called in to check and it is positive. He was buzzing with glee and excitement that he barely is able to hold the news from his Aunt.

“I didn’t know what to do, I-I thought it was just a joke. You know some prank. S-So I called, a-and they told me it’s real. I got in! I wanted you to know first b-because you…I know you’d be happy! I’m going to M.I.T., Mr. Stark!”

Peter chuckles as he remembers the first time Tony looked at him straight in the eyes, a small secretive smile in his lips and with a hand holding a screw driver he told him that he’d like MIT. He blushed at that, it is a compliment and Tony Stark didn’t just compliment people. He remembers quietly letting it slip that he may not be able to afford that, and the man just waved his hand off dismissively a grin in his face and nonchalantly dropping down the fact that he had nothing to worry about.

It didn’t make sense at first, Peter thought it meant that Tony is urging him to take some scholarship grants which he thought so at first until Aunt May told him that Tony has left a college fund for him. And Peter had cried that day, _again_ , because it felt like he is still there as if he knew it would happen. He remembered sobbing in his Aunt’s embrace when she quietly told him how she and Tony talked about Peter’s dreams and plans, how she said that he had a look in his face that she could only describe as _proud._

Tears begin to slip from Peter’s tired eyes, he tried not to cry since it been quite some time but the weight in his chest didn’t feel any lighter through the years.

There are days when he would do something and he’d turn to his side buzzing with excitement waiting for Tony’s voice to perk up somewhere and say good job, some days he forgets, some days he wish he could still see him.

“Have I…have I made you proud yet, Mr. Stark?”

Peter lets out a loud sob as he remembers Happy driving him to MIT for his admission exam. He was nervous, his heart racing and his palms sweating. Then Happy stopped the car, he looked up at him through the rear view mirror, telling him if Tony was there, he’d tell him he’s glad…or maybe he wouldn’t say them through words but he’d let him know. And Peter knew…Peter knew he would have done just that.

Peter held his tears back and instead he took with him Tony’s smiles as he head to the door. He took his pride and made it his own, he took the glimmer in his eyes as a reminder the reason why he could still do this and waltzed in braver than ever.

He knows he’d want him to remember him like that, not the mess and bruised Tony Stark in the aftermath of the fight in Germany, not the Tony Stark that fought the army of aliens, but the Tony Stark who believed in him when no one did, the Tony who laughed with him in one of their tinkering binges, the Tony who wanted to be better, the Tony who was a father to him when there was no one else to do the job.

As a tear drips on the petal of the flower in his hand Peter finds himself gazing at the blues. It reminded him of the device in Tony’s chest, the small device that once saved him then later saved _them_.

The proof that Tony Stark has a heart.

“You know, there’s a house nearby. The guy who lives by he’s nice, he let me take some flowers.” Peter says as he tries to wipe off the tears from his eyes. He looks up at the black marble slab with gold engravings. “I didn’t know how to tell him, that I’m taking this to a graveyard. I wonder if he’s gonna be disappointed. But I really thought you’d like them…it reminds me of the arc reactor.”

Peter sets down the flowers in front of the headstone. He smiles as he gazes at the name engraved on the stone.

A few years ago, Tony told him that he wanted him to be a better man that he ever is but truly…no one could ever be a better man than him. After all, Tony Stark is more than a hero, he is a father, a friend, a mentor and a husband. And yes, he isn’t perfect but he tried his best to do the right thing.

Tony Stark, the man who risked his life to save the world that has never been merciful to him.

“He told him that the girl I ought to give these would be something…you’re not…but you’re something, right Mr. Stark? You would have liked Mr. Robert. I think he kinda looks like you too.” Peter chuckles.

As the sun rises up high in the sky, Peter rises with it. He puts a hand over the top of the gravestone.

“I’m going to make you proud Mr. Stark. You’ll tell me yourself, one day, right?”

 

 

 

 

 

**_….You taught me the courage of the stars_ **

**_How light carries on endlessly_ **

**_Even after death_ **

**_…How rare and beautiful it is_ **

**_To truly exist…._ **

**_I would give everything to hear_ **

**_You say it one more time,_ **

**_That the universe was made_ **

**_Just to be seen by my eyes…._ **

****

****

**_ANTHONY EDWARD “TONY” STARK_ **

**_1970-2023_ **

 

 

 

 


End file.
